As the Multnomah County Sheriff's Office investigates allegations that three jail deputies separately used a work computer to view online pornography, Sheriff Bob Skipper has decided to disconnect the Internet in most parts of the county jails.

Under a policy to start Dec. 1, employees inside the two operating jails will no longer be able to surf the Web from work computers unless they submit a written request detailing why they need to use the Internet for their job and receive an exemption.

Computers in most monitoring stations and cell blocks will be disconnected.

"I want people focusing on their job and not using the Internet," Skipper said.

The move comes in response to concerns about personal Internet use by employees -- the subject of several ongoing internal investigations in the sheriff's office. It also will apply to the rest of the agency's employees, such as those in law enforcement and administrative roles, said Deputy Paul McRedmond, a sheriff's spokesman.

Employees who use the Internet as a work tool -- such as jail deputies who contact other agencies about inmates or law enforcement detectives -- will continue to have access to the Internet.

The issue first came to public attention as a problem last year when sheriff's officials learned that a corrections deputy had bragged on an online gaming site about beating a jail inmate without provocation.

The deputy, David B. Thompson, had accessed the site more than 1,700 times while at work during the previous eight months. An internal investigation recently recommended discipline for Thompson, though he could appeal. The district attorney's office also investigated, but filed no charges.

About a month ago, agency leaders discovered while examining a computer hard drive in an unrelated investigation that three jail deputies had separately used the computer more than a year earlier to look at pornographic images, said Chief Deputy Ron Bishop, who manages the jails.

The discoveries came just after the office started using new software that tracks sheriff's employees' Internet usage. It showed some people were spending far more time surfing the Web for personal reasons than previously suspected, Bishop said.

"Is it potentially impacting productivity? The answer is yes," he said.

Sgt. Phil Anderchuk, president of the union that represents corrections deputies, emphasized that misuse of the Internet isn't a widespread problem, but said he had no objection to the new restrictions.

"We've worked for decades without the Internet; it's not the end of the world," he said. "There are times it's useful, but it's not necessary."

Since taking office, Skipper has promised to crack down on employee misbehavior, following years when his predecessor, Sheriff Bernie Giusto, scaled back the agency's disciplinary system. Skipper became interim sheriff in July after Giusto resigned under pressure for ethics violations. Skipper won re-election this month to finish the final two years of Giusto's term.